A Tale of Owls and Snakes
by DanniCat
Summary: Fem!Harry, Marauder's Era, no time travel. Emily watches as her older brother, James Potter, goes off to Hogwart's and new adventures leaving her behind in the dust. How does she react? Follow her on her journey of betrayal, love, misconceptions, family and friendship
1. James Goes First

A nine year old girl with messy black hair and stunning green eyes watched with a mixture of pride, worry and jealousy as her older brother lead the way through the brick barrier. She knew he was scared, he had told her as much hours before when he had been unable to sleep before heading to Hogwarts for the first time. But she would never have been able to tell otherwise.

A large hand grabbed her own. Emily glanced up at the familiar eyes of her father with a small smile and tried to imitate her brother's confident stride through the barrier. She could feel her father's laugh but ignored it as the brick wall grew suddenly closer.

Without meaning to, she came to a stop in front of it. Her hand received a reassuring squeeze before her father gently lead her through the fake wall and into the platform.

Her first thought was that it was too noisy and too dark. She leaned further into the comforting presence of her father before searching for two familiar figures in the crowd. Eventually, her mother's voice caught her attention.

She carefully pulled her father through the crowd as she attempted to get closer to them.

"Are you sure you have everything, James?" The boy nodded and looked eager to escape his mother's presence, "Alright. Say goodbye to your father and sister. And then you can get on the train."

"Kay, Mum!" The boy rushed over and hugged the man who he was sure to look like in a few more years, "Bye Dad! I'll see you during Winter Break!"

"Be good. I don't want any letters from your teachers for at least a month, understood?"

The boy nodded, but any reply was cut off by his mother's voice.

"But we want to hear from _you_ at _least_ once a week."

"Yes, Mum. Bye Dad."

"Goodbye, James. You'll do great."

"Bye, Emsy!"

As her brother turned away, Emily panicked. The girl ran from her father's side and wrapped her arms around her brother's waist.

"Can I come too, Jamie?"

The sigh she got in response just proved that they had this conversation several times, "No Ems. You still can't come, but I promise I'll write okay?"

"Every day?"

He laughed a little before wrapping his arms around her, "There won't be that much to write about. How about once a week?"

She frowned, that would be two long, "Twice a week?"

He laughed again and Emily smiled, she loved her brother's laugh.

"You got a deal, Ems. Twice a week. I'll see you in a few months, okay?"

Emily felt the tears start to well up at the thought of not seeing her brother that long. She hurried to swallow them back when she remembered all of the other people on the station. Nodding once she squeezed her older brother a little harder before stepping back.

"Okay, Jamie. I'll see you soon. Have a good year!"

He smiled down at her one more time before ruffling her hair once as he ran away.

"Hey!"

Several pairs of amused eyes watched her as she grumbled under her breath while attempting to fix her untamable hair.

"Mum? Dad?" Her parents looked down at her, "I don't think I'm going to miss him very much after all."

The two older Potter's laughed and shook their heads at the antics of their children. With James aboard the train they were ready and willing to mingle amongst the other parents with Emily staying close by their sides.

Before they knew it, the clock struck eleven. All eyes turned to the train and the many waving hands. Emily caught a glimpse of the metal ring on one of the hands. Happy that her brother was wearing her Christmas gift, the tiny girl waved back, completely forgetting that she was supposed to be angry at her brother.

(0,0)

The next morning she was woken by the sound of a tapping at her window.

Eagerly she rushed to open the portal for the bird. Attached to its legs were two letters both written in a very familiar hand. She gave the bird the treats from her desk absently as she started to tear open the one addressed to her.

Jamie was in Gryffindor. No surprise there, all of the Potters had been in Gryffindor. His dorm mates were wicked. Sirius was a Black, but he was in Gryffindor so he couldn't be all bad according to James. Peter was quiet but seemed quite eager to be friends. Remus was really quiet and hadn't said much and he was in rags but he seemed at least somewhat interesting.

The feast had been enough food to feed them for weeks and the description of all of the different things left Emily realizing she had yet to eat breakfast. Quickly she read through to the end. She frowned at the last paragraph.

 _'I can't sleep. It's already past midnight, but I just can't manage to close my eyes. I think it_ _would be easier with you here._ _Is because I ate too much. And all of my games and things are at home. And remember- don't go in my room while I'm gone!'_

Emily looked around the familiar surroundings of her brother's room and the bed she had just vacated.

"Oops." She smiled to herself and lay the letter down carefully before heading downstairs with the other letter. Eager to share what James said with her parents. After breakfast she would write back to him. Who knows, maybe he would send another letter!

(0,0)

Emily sat staring at the empty sky outside her window.

James was coming home in a few days. Maybe she could talk to him then. He hadn't sent her a single letter in the last month. She hoped he was okay. He'd written to Mum and Dad of course. And he had been writing to her twice a week. But lately, no matter how many times she wrote to him, he hadn't written back.

He was probably just busy at school. Plus it was nice not to worry about opening a letter and having feathers fly out at her. Apparently James had been spending his first school year learning all sorts of pranks.

Emily had been his test subject as usual.

She sighed again still watching the monotonous black sky, maybe he would write today. He had to plan gifts with her for Mum and Dad after all. They always planned their gifts together. Or Emily made gifts and James put his name on the card, but they usually talked about it anyway.

She was just about to turn away and crawl into bed when a black spot appeared. She quickly grabbed the treats and opened the window. She wanted to read the letter as soon as possible. The owl landed gracefully on the window sill and she handed it the treat while untying the letter.

She was just about to open it when the names on the front nearly caused her to burst into tears. _'Mum and Dad'_ nothing about his little sister. She glanced around. Maybe she dropped it? But the shifting of several papers and books lead to disappointment. Watching the bird fly away she made her way towards the parlor where she figured her parents would be.

(0,0)

This was the worst Yule celebration ever.

Emily watched with a present in her lap as Jamie just kept ignoring her in favor of laughing with his 'best mate.' Every year they opened their presents from Mother and Father first and their presents to each other last. It was tradition. They'd done it that way forever.

But here she is sitting with the first gift on her lap, unaccompanied by her brother. Just as she was about to say something Jamie reached out to grab a present. She smiled, of course her brother wouldn't forget, just because he has a best friend now doesn't mean anything.

"For me? Aw, Sirius. You shouldn't have."

"How could I not? Especially when I have my own pretty package here?"

Without further ado, the boys tore into their packages for each other. Emily watched them for a few moments before feeling her parents eyes on her. Shaking back the feeling of loneliness, she gently peeled her own paper away from the present within.

"'The Theory of Potions'! Mum, Dad… I … Thank you!" The small girl hurried to throw her arms around her parent's shoulders.

Both of them laughed and responded with a firm warning that everything in the book was theoretical. Which meant she was not allowed to use any of the information, 'in anyway that would make it reality, practical, or useful.'

Emily also grinned when she unwrapped the newest Cleansweep from its packaging.

"She likes quidditch?" Black's voice cut though Emily's litany of 'thank you'.

Jamie actually grinned, proud of his baby sister, "Loves it! She's also really good for a girl. Only thing she loves more is reading. And even then only on occasion."

"Reading is more practical." Black obviously went to comment to James, but she cut him off, "Quidditch on the other hand is more fun when I trounce everyone else."

The Gryffindor snorted but Emily knew he would find out soon enough. No one could beat her on the Quidditch pitch. Even if James was a better Chaser most days. She hadn't missed the snitch in three years.

When James suddenly turned back to Black to talk she frowned and swore she wasn't hurt.

And if she was immensely pleased when James waited to open her gift. Well, that was her own business, wasn't it?

(0,0)

When James went back to school, he went back to writing her at least once a week. Every letter mentioned Black, but Emily got good at skipping over those parts.

She figured the other boy would be visiting over the summer, but maybe they could ignore him until he went away. That always seemed to work well for Emily. She frowned at a new name mentioned. Well, two actually. She might have seen 'Lily' before but she wasn't a constant in his letters. But 'Snivellus' that seemed like a horrible name to her. Poor kid.

She wondered if either of them would be visiting over the summer. Maybe it would be nice to have a few older friends at Hogwarts. They could help her with lessons and stuff. And it would be nice not to need to hang on her brother for every second of her first week there.

Not a great way to start off making friends at all.

 **Okay. I have no idea where this came from. But it was inspired in part by something I read on AO3. And only very loosely. It featured a RB/Fem!HP pairing (not where I'm heading) alongside JP/LE and a dash of Jealous!SB (Which will probably happen). I don't think this will take too much time out of my other work because I doubt any of the chapters will be much longer than this. And talk about a short chapter for me! Maybe they'll get better when Emily goes to Hogwarts. Anyway- Follow, Review, Fave and all that stuff!**

 **Oh. And I need a better title. So any suggestions would be lovely 200 points to the house of your choice for the best title!**


	2. Then Comes Black

As Emily suspected, that summer was different than any before that.

At first it was just like it always was, except instead of imagining what Hogwarts would be like, James was sharing what he knew it was like. The stories were absolutely fascinating to Emily. For the first week.

After that, Snivellus, Lily, Remus, and Pettigrew, became old news. That wasn't even counting the stories about him and Black. She was almost glad when Black came over for a few days in the middle of summer. It meant that she wouldn't have to listen to the same stories yet again.

Almost glad.

The first day Black was there, they locked themselves in Jamie's room and only came out for lunch and then dinner. They claimed they were working on homework, but even Emily didn't believe that. Still, there parents left the boy's alone for the day.

Emily spent the day talking about potions with her mom and then flying with her dad in the afternoon. They flew over the woods around their house. It was nice to spend time with him they talked about nothing and he shared some of his own stories about Hogwarts, somehow it was easier to listen to his stories. Despite the fact she knew them all by heart.

"How are you doing, Ems?"

The girls blinked her green eyes up at him, not really understanding, "Fine, I guess. Why?"

"You've been quiet since James left for Hogwarts, I thought it might be better by now."

She shrugged, "I'm fine. It's just… different."

Charlus looked down at her with a smile, "I know it seems like he's leaving you, but he's just doing something new. When you're both at Hogwarts it'll be just like always. You'll see."

"Kay." She didn't really believe that, but maybe she was wrong, "Can we race around the house?"

Her father grinned, "Sure. Ready… Set…" He took off, "GO!"

"Hey!"

Emily's laughter echoed through the air long after she had passed her father and landed amongst the flowers in the garden.

(0,0)

The next day she unfortunately had to deal with Black and his _wonderful_ personality.

Breakfast was fine. Turns out that Black wasn't much of a morning person and sat focus dedicated to eating his food for the majority of the meal. Any attempt to draw him into the conversation was faced with a death glare. This meant that Emily and James got to talk like they always did. There was a lot of teasing and laughter in the air that morning.

"How about we settle this over a Quidditch match?" The boy grinned over at her.

Emily smirked, "I don't know, how bad are your Quidditch Skills after a year off? I wouldn't want it to be too easy."

The mention of the popular game brought Sirius out of the morning blues, "You think you can beat James? I've seen him fly, he's almost as good as me."

"Is that supposed to impress me?"

Before James could warn Black, the other boy opened his mouth, "How about a game then?"

"There are really enough of us for a game. No one can play a real game with three people. But would position trials work?"

"Works for me. You, me, and James. Deal?"

"You wanna join Dad?"

The man in question shook his head, "'Want to' Emily. But I'll pass this time. Although I can be a referee for you all."

Black nodded and reached across for Emily's hand, "Deal?"

Emily smirked and her brother was once again cut off, "Deal."

James finally gained a moment to speak, "You're in big trouble, Sirius."

"C'mon. You know I'm better than you."

"Only at beater. But you're going to regret this."

"Never."

Emily cut in, "We'll see about that."

(0,0)

Breakfast finished on a lighter note with Black taking a little more interest in the conversation. While the house elves cleared the table, Emily led the way to the broom shed.

She pulled out her new Cleansweep and handed a newer Shooting Star to Black. He sneered (definitely Slytherin blood there) and stated that he had his own broom.

"Alright, Mimsy!"

A house elf cracked into the small shed already bowing low, "Can Mimsy be helping Miss Emily?"

"Can you grab Black's broom from the guest room, please?"

"Mimsy be doing that." The elf cracked out and back again in a few seconds, "Here it be, Miss Emily."

"Thank you, Mimsy."

"Miss Emily being welcomes."

The elf cracked away once again leaving her standing with Black, James and her father. Black looked at her like she was crazy.

"Why are you so nice to them? They're just servants."

"If I'm nice to them, then their nice to me. It's always good to have nice people working for you."

That said James grabbed his broom and the four of them headed off to the small pitch in their yard. Black looked dubiously at the girl as she struggled to mount her broom properly. Almost sliding off a few times. He turned to James who was staring at her with absolute confusion marring his features.

"I thought you said she was good."

"She's amazing, I don't… I don't understand."

She smiled slightly at them tucking her hair behind her ear while biting her lip and blushing, "Sorry, it's been a while since I've flown."

James blinked at her while her father chuckled lightly, "I'm sure you'll be comfortable soon, Emily. Why don't you try a lap or two to warm up?"

She smiled at her father and made a slow and faltering path towards the edge of the field. Black turned his back to her to say something to James and the young girl quickly sped around the field doing a few loops and spins. She cut off her path halfway around the circle when she saw Black stiffen slightly at the fact James was obviously watching her.

By the time Black turned around she was only meters away from where he had last seen her and she faltered slightly nearly crashing into the boundary.

"James? Do you _let_ her win when you play? Is that why she thinks she's the best thing to ever happen to quidditch?"

The messy haired boy only shook his head, "I haven't let her win since I was seven and she just got her first broom."

"… I'm starting to think you took a potion the last time we played, Potter."

"You wish, Black."

They smiled at each other but were interrupted by the sound of Emily's voice, "I think I'm warmed up now, Father."

Black conceded that she looked almost stable on the broom, but her tense posture proved that she could only be staying there by luck.

They took to the air and traded positions as Chaser and Defender. Emily would be Defender for Black. James would be Defender for Emily. Black would be the Defender for James.

James went first, out of ten shots the boy succeeded in making five past Sirius. Mr. Potter and Emily were slightly impressed, this was usually James' game. Emily went next and snuck five past James as well. Much to Black's confusion. It was bizarre, one second she would be barely holding onto the broom then she would slip just perfectly and end up around her brother with a clear shot at the hoops.

Black's turn went just the same. He only managed to get four Quaffles into the hoops past Emily. The boy stared disbelieving. It was just like watching her with James. It seemed like every time the girl slipped, she managed to just knock him off balance or tip the quaffle out of his grasp. Once she blocked his shot with the edge of her broom.

Needless to say by the time the first competition was finished, Emily was trying to hide her smug smile and Black was fuming. Emily giggled to herself, muffling the sound with her hand while hiding behind her curtain of black hair.

The Slytherin turned Gryffindor must have sensed her amusement. He turned to her with something resembling a sneer.

"You got lucky, Potter. Just wait, I'll get you in the Beater game."

Emily barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes. The boy may have the strength needed to redirect the bludger, but she would be willing to bet her aim was a thousand times better. The only issue would be continuing to pretend that she couldn't fly all that well. But it would be worth it.

"Alright as it stands, Emily is winning with 6 blocks and 5 scores. James in second with 5 and 5. Sirius you're right behind him with 5 and 4. The next game is for beater technique. Who wants to go first?"

Black suddenly appeared and snatched the beater's bat from the stand. He cast a sneer over his shoulder.

"I'll go first. Let's see the little sister beat this."

James gave a shout of encouragement. Emily gave a half smile and ducked her head. 'Little sister' or not she had a mean bludger. She doubted the Black sisters had ever beaten Black at 'his' game. The Black heir was in for a surprise.

Black hovered in the center of the pitch looking at the thirteen figures around him. Seven green, five red, and one blue. They represented the thirteen other players usually on the field. Two points for every green (representing the opposing team) target hit, a loss of two for every red (your team mates) target hit, and one point for hitting the blue (representing your fellow beater).

The idea of the drill was to teach aim and to encourage using your fellow beater and trusting them. The best beater pairs were two players who trusted each other and built up a camaraderie that allowed them to instinctively read each other.

The timer started and the targets started flying around. Within the first ten seconds Black had hit one target of every color. Emily winced as another red target took a hit. It looked like she had been right about the boy's aim. By the time the end of the drill came, he seemed to have gained some kind of rhythm.

Next was Emily's turn, James always wanted a target score to beat. It made him a better player. She sat on her broom with the bat in her hand, not even trying to fight the usually drifting of her broom as the extra weight caused a little drag. She made sure to take in the locations of the other targets and waited for her father's signal to start.

She made a decision as the first bludger went flying into a red target. She would forget flying badly and settle for making sure the momentum from each swing flew her backwards. She decided her plan was a success when a hit off of the beater target smashed into a green one. When the countdown hit zero, Emily was proud of her run. Though she had to admit, she did a lot better with James in place of the beater target.

James came last a completely trashed both her and Black's scores. He landed from the drill with a smile on his face, firmly ignoring the giant bruise on his side that Emily was sure he must have. One of the bludger hits had rebounded into him hard and fast.

Her father was quick to read out the scores before Black could say anything about teaching James all he knew.

"First is James with a score of 14 points in the beater game and a bonus of 5 points for not hitting a single member of his own team; bringing him to a total of 29 points. Second is Emily with a total of 25 points. Sirius is still in third with a score of 19 points."

Black was muttering under his breath about not having the time to properly care for his broom before the match and something about charmed targets but Emily decided to just prove him completely wrong in the next two games.

"The Keeper's game! Each of you will block five shots from the other two for a total of ten attempts."

They all nodded, this game was probably the simplest of the lot, aside from the Seeker's game. You had a total of ten shots and ten blocks. That's all there was to it.

Black must have taken a page from James. When her father called out for a volunteer to go first the grey-eyed boy smirked at her.

"Ladies first."

She couldn't resist the temptation, "Don't feel pressured. I don't mind going before you."

She flew off (shaking slightly on her broom) to the sound of his indignant response and James' laughter. It was good to know that she could still make her brother laugh like that, she had been worried. Not that she would ever admit that to him. She had an image to uphold after all.

…And he would never let her live it down.

She hovered just below the center hoop putting her equidistant from the center of every hoop. Theoretically it was the ideal spot. But she learned long ago that a theory was rarely a hundred percent sure thing.

By the time James had finished his turn she was pleased to admit she only missed two of the boy's attempts. A tie for her record so far. And she couldn't contain her smirk when Black couldn't even get a blade of grass past her defenses. The boy's took their turns. And she had to admit that Black was a very good Keeper.

"Alright," Her father's voice once again echoed through the air, "James is still in the lead with 37 points. Emily has 33 points. Sirius is gaining with 28 points. Everyone down on the ground for a brief meeting."

James and Emily exchanged a look. What could their father want to ask? What was there to ask about?

"You all know that there are two different Seeker games, correct?"

They all nodded.

"Good. You can either do a solo, timed attempt at the snitch for a score tied to your time or you can try a group attempt at the snitch for ten points to the winner. Either one is a decent test, it's up to you."

James and Emily had long ago decided to stick with the timed attempts as the time started when you spotted the snitch. And Emily usually spotted the small golden ball far sooner than her brother. It was just a fairer game.

But Black didn't know that.

"I say we do a group game. It'll be a good demonstration of who is actually the best seeker."

Emily looked at James who shrugged. She was ninety percent sure that her brother was as annoyed at Black's rants about his 'bloody amazing' quidditch skills as she and her father were.

"Group game it is."

The three teens took to the air, Father stepped forward and raised the snitch up with a small smile, "Start on my word."

With that he released the snitch. The golden blur flew up to hover between the three players for a brief moment. Teasing them before it disappeared into the sun. Emily smiled as she watched Black's futile attempts to track the ball's motion.

"Three… Two… One… Seek!"

The boy's took off to opposite sides of the pitch while Emily slowly circled around the center. James' move was born out of years of experience. He knew that the only chance he had was the small chance that he was closer to the snitch than his sister was. She expected that Black's was merely a move that had no tactic or plan behind it. He merely wanted to do something.

Ten minutes later- None of them had caught the snitch. Emily had seen it several times but had decided against going after it. She wanted to see how long it took Black to spot it. But seeing as the last time it had appeared a mere meter above his head before fluttering off, she decided the game would take hours to end unless she took matters into her own hands.

Suddenly a golden blur flew through the edge of her vision. She whirled on her broom and scanned the sky…

There! On the opposite side of the pitch. Emily forgot that she was supposed to be pretending to be a horrid flyer. She lay as close to the broom as she could and urged herself forward. She was off like a shot. James followed her line of vision and groaned when he saw how far the snitch was. He had next to no hope of catching it. But the brave Gryffindor he was, James folded himself in half and raced towards their target.

It was then that Black noticed the snitch. He started towards it with a smirk, thinking he was the only one who had spotted it. Emily could see the instant he spotted her and James racing towards it. He blinked before speeding forward. Just as Emily and Black drew near the snitch banked. Emily had to drop out of the chase to avoid being flattened by her brother's best friend.

Glaring after the boy she pressed herself even faster, flying below both the boys and the snitch. She really hoped that the snitch would dive instead of flying straight up.

Thankfully her prayers were answered.

The snitch carved a path towards the ground and Emily was able to follow it while James and Sirius ended up on her tail. Unfortunately, their larger weight gave them an advantage while descending like this. Soon enough they had drawn even with her. But she was almost there, arm outstretched.

The snitch flew right, just past Emily's grasping hand. Hissing under her breath she did something she didn't even know she could. Dropping one leg and pulling up on her other arm, the young girl demonstrated a perfect barrel roll over the back of one shocked Sirius Black. In seconds she was back on the trail of the snitch and just as it went to climb- Emily lunged and caught the golden ball firmly in her fist.

Emily grinned and landed as quickly as she could before running over her father, "Did you see that?!"

The laughing man gripped her around the waist and pulled the small girl into the air swinging her around before wrapping her in a hug.

"I most definitely did!"

"It was just like when that girl from the Kestrels at the game last month! I didn't even think about it, it was so cool!"

He chuckled and squeezed her one last time before setting her on the ground, "That it was. That it was."

"I demand a rematch! She cheated!"

Emily rolled her eyes at Black's outburst.

"I didn't cheat, I merely made sure you made an incorrect assumption about my flying. I didn't know it was considered cheating to be bad at something."

The boy spoke through clenched teeth, practically snarling at the 'unfairness' of it all, "I was not given all of the information."

"I heard James tell you that I was a fantastic quidditch player. You're the one who decided a wobbly start on my broom meant that all of what James had said was a lie."

"But.. But…"

"'But'? 'But' what? I won. That's all there is to it. Next time you challenge someone to a game, make sure you know all of the facts."

(0,0)

June 31st came and went and Emily was one year closer to her own Hogwarts' letter arriving in her mail. And could hardly wait when James' got his own school list.

Black had gone home not long after the quidditch loss and Emily had been glad to see him go. The boy had been a menace, dropping things on her, tripping her, and even once throwing food at her, after her win. Talk about a sore loser.

"I think we can go to Diagon today. We'll get all of James' things and a few new robes for Emily. Is there anyone you want to invite?"

Emily groaned at the thought of seeing Black again when she had only just gotten rid of him, but James' words surprised her.

"Can we owl Lupin? I don't know if he has anyone else to go with."

Their mother smiled in approval and the letter was sent. Emily couldn't help but be proud of her brother. She knew that he usually hated people who were poor. It wasn't a blind hatred, it was more that he didn't understand and he thought them to be gross. The fact that he was _asking_ to meet up with someone whose robes he complained were patched and second hand meant he was growing up a little.

The brother and sister spent the day together and Emily wished that it would never end. They played wizard's chess (James won the game, Emily had no patience and was more content to send her pieces to their doom for talking back to her). He played a few games of gobstones with her despite the fact neither of them were very fond of the game. They ate lunch then talked for the rest of the afternoon.

They didn't hear back from the Lupin's until dinner time. James had seemed excited as he pulled the note from the owl's leg. Suddenly he grinned and looked at his mother.

"He can come! He just needs to know when we're planning on going, cause they have a few evenings that are full in the next week or so."

Emily almost rolled her eyes, because that wasn't obvious at all. The new moon had been a week and a half ago. The full moon would be in five or six days. They should really try harder if they were trying to keep the fact he was a werewolf a secret.

"Ask him if he's free for Tuesday. We can meet them all there or we can pick young Mr. Lupin up before we head over. We'll make a day of it, shopping and eating and whatever else you two wish to get up to."

James nodded and called a house elf to ask for parchment and a quill. Within minutes the letter had flown off with one of the family owls. Hopefully they would be heading the Diagon soon and they could all meet another one of James' friends.

Emily could only hope this one had a better sense of decorum. Maybe he could teach James' a thing or two about manners if that was the case.

(0,0)

When they met the Lupin's at the Leaky Cauldron a few days later the boy looked as though he was dressed in his best robes. They were worn thin but looked to be made out of fine material, and they also smelled…stale. Like they hadn't been out of the closet for very long.

The boy was thin with brown hair and pretty green eyes. They weren't as bright as Emily's but she liked him anyway. Especially since he was only a little taller than her, unlike James and Black who both towered over her.

"Lupin!" James called out and stepped forward slightly, as though the boy hadn't looked at them the instant they had stepped through the doors of the Leaky Cauldron.

"Potter." The boy smiled and greeted James with polite excitement rather than trying to draw the attention of everyone in the building.

Then he looked behind James and gave a small nod to each of the others in turn, "Lord Potter, Lady Potter, Miss Potter."

Emily liked him a lot. He was polite without being aloof. Money may not be excessive in their family but at least they knew the value of good manners. Father greeted him with a smile.

"No need to be quite that formal. You may call me Mr. Potter if you wish, but I would prefer you call me Charlus if you feel comfortable with that."

Mother nodded, "The same for me. I would be delighted if you referred to me as Dorea."

James seemed terribly shocked by all of this. Black had been told to refer to the Potters as Aunt and Uncle from the day he was born as they technically were family. But they never complained when the boy forgot and referred to them by their titles. To have them accepting Remus that way probably confused the poor boy to know end. And Emily did so love confusing her brother.

She smiled and stepped forward until she was even with James, "I would rather you call me 'Emily,' if you don't mind. Miss Potter seems oddly formal even to me, _Mr_. Lupin."

The boy actually laughed, "It does sound rather ridiculous doesn't it. Very well, I would like it if all of you called me 'Remus.' Mr. Lupin either sounds like my father or like Ja…I've just gotten in trouble from Professor McGonagall."

Emily grinned at him, "I'm guessing you get in trouble by association then? I know how James is, how many detentions has he dragged you to?"

Green eyes looked up into the surely amused eyes of her parents before glancing at the distressed James Potter next to her. He winked slightly and leaned in to stage whisper a little closer to her ear.

"I have no idea. I'm sure I lost count within the first month."

Emily giggled and Remus smiled while all of the parents shared amused looks. Eventually it was Remus' father who stepped forward and drew the attention away from the young children.

"It seems as though your daughter has managed to distract my son. I'm afraid I shall have to introduce myself." He gave Remus a halfhearted glare and the young boy blushed slightly still laughing along with Emily, "My name is Lyall Lupin and this is my wife, Hope Lupin."

"Charlus and Dorea." Father smiled at him and shook his hand.

Soon enough the adults were engaged in a conversation that none of the children found entertaining in the least. They were eager to head in to Diagon. No matter how many times you went, you were always enraptured by the magic of the place.

She waited until there was a brief pause in the conversation before reaching up to brush her fingers against her mother's hand. The woman glanced down at her with a warm smile.

"Yes, Emily?"

"Might the three of us go into Diagon? We'll be careful…"

Mother was going to protest but Father gently touched the back of her shoulder before speaking, "Why don't you all go to Madame Malkin's and get your school robes? Emily can pick out something if she wishes as well. It will do you good to get the worst chore of the day done first. We'll meet you there shortly."

Emily nodded before either of the boys could protest and dragged Remus out the door with a hand gripping the sleeve of his robes, "C'mon! This will be great!"

She could feel James rolling his eyes at her antics. She paused just inside the door, as though she had just remembered something and rushed back to the parents.

"My apologies, I did not mean to rush off like that. It was a pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Lupin. I hope you have a wonderful day!" She blushed lightly at her slip up and gave a small curtsy to the Lupin's.

They returned her well wishes and Emily smiled before rushing back to the door and pushing the boys out into the alley behind the building. Thankfully, an older wizard was just preparing to enter Diagon himself and was more than willing to let the three eager 'young'uns' to follow him through the arch way.

The instant they were through the arch way, James started to pout. Emily ignored his whining to thank the man who smiled at her before accepting her thanks and sending her on her way with the wish of an enjoyable outing.

"Emily! I _really_ do not want to go to Madame Malkin's. It's not fair. Why should the best part of the day be spent with a magical measuring tape that smacks me all the time?!"

She rolled her eyes at her older brother, "No one _wants_ to go to Madame Malkin's. She doesn't carry very much in the way of fashionable every day wear. Usually she does uniforms and office robes. Secondly, the tape measure would not attack you if you would just stay still."

That said the youngest Potter started down the street easily dodging her fellow shoppers and leaving the two boys to try and keep up. When she stepped into the doorway of a store her shadows followed without hesitation.

And it was only when they joined her looking at the product lining the shelves that they came to a rather obvious conclusion.

"Em?" Green eyes scanned the shelves as she nodded to indicate she was listening, "You do realize that Madame Malkin's doesn't sell candy, right?"

The young girl looked over at the brown haired boy next to her, "And here I was so convinced that I was lookin at various colors of ties. I must properly thank him for saving me from my naïve assumptions, what a dear older brother he is."

"Alright. Check the sarcasm, Miss Potter. Father said we should go to Madame Malkin's."

"No he said we should go there before making the rest of our stops."

"Exactly."

"I don't remember stopping for sweets being on our agenda, therefore I am following Father's instructions to the letter."

"I really doubt this is what Mr. Potter had in mind…" Remus spoke quietly for the first time since entering Diagon.

"He speaks!" The boy blushed, "I know that. But he did indicate that we should have plenty of time before they joined us. It only makes since to indulge in a treat now as it is unlikely all of us shall be fitted at once. Truthfully, we are probably saving time by giving ourselves something to do. It'll keep us from distracting and annoying Madame Malkin at the very least."

James blinked, "I have a feeling this is why no one ever believes me when I say you're evil. You've got everything planned out don't you." It wasn't really a question.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, brother. Besides, the reason they believe me is that I'm the cuter one. Now if you'll excuse me for just a moment."

She disappeared almost instantly and Remus was almost considering apparition. He turned to James with a smile that Emily noticed from her spot in line to check out.

"You know… I think I'm going to like you're sister. When is she coming to Hogwarts again?"

"Next year. And don't remind me."

(0,0)

They made it to Madame Malkin's ten minutes later. And Emily came to a decision shortly after their arrival.

She liked Remus a lot better than Sirius. Even if she had only known him for minutes versus the years she had known the Black heir. The new boy was quiet but not because he was shy or cocky like most of the 'shy' children she knew. He merely liked to listen and only spoke when it would make a good impression. In general, he was just a nice guy. Too nice to be around James if she was honest.

At the moment she was sharing some of the sweets they had gathered. Or she and James had gathered anyway. Remus had briefly fingered the few coins in his pocket before shaking his head. He didn't need any sweets. He also refused to let either of the Potter's buy some for him.

But when Emily was offered a bargain and ended up with more candy than she could possibly eat, he was more than willing to help her with the disposal of something that 'could only hope to make her ill in the future.' He was a wonderful Gryffindor that way.

As the two fast friends began carefully picking their way through the sweets on the seat between them (Emily picking the hard candies and the sweet flavors while Remus enjoyed the chewy kinds and some of the saltier choices). They divvied the chocolate between them while they chatted amiably. Occasionally they paused their conversation to laugh at James. The boy had yet to learn to stand still and as such was suffering through several attacks by the enchanted measuring tape.

James had been picked to go first by Madame Malkin because they all knew he was going to take the most time to get fitted. The other three stools were filled with others also getting ready for the school year. And Madame Malkin and her two assistants were struggling with one more than customer than they were strictly prepared for.

Eventually a Ravenclaw accepted her robes with a smile and a thank you, before handing over the asked for price and a nice bonus. She slipped out the door just as Madame Malkin turned her eyes on Emily who was still laughing with her brother's room mate.

"Miss Potter?"

With a longing sigh at the last of the chocolate she moved up to the empty station and waited patiently while the measuring tape began flitting around her. She hoped Remus would save her some chocolate, but she had a feeling that was too much to ask of the boy. Green eyes closed as her thoughts began to drift and she let herself relax.

"Miss Potter?"

She blinked up looking into the eyes of the seamstress and family friend.

She smiled, "Yes, Madame Malkin?"

"What can I get you fitted for today? You're not off to Hogwarts yet, are you?"

"No, ma'am. One more year for me. I was just looking for a new cloak, just something basic, I still have the one you made me a few years ago."

The woman frowned, "That won't do. The growth charms will be reaching their limit soon, if they haven't already. I have something you may like though. It's a good quality and should work all year if you wanted it to."

Emily shrugged, "I don't really need a new cloak as nice as all that. I have several good ones, just something simple to replace the blue one."

"Nonsense. You stand right here and I'll be right back."

The woman disappeared into the back much to the dismay of those waiting in line for assistance. Her assistants attempted to calm the patrons while finishing up their own customers as quickly as they could.

The Hufflepuff fifth year had just stepped down when Madame Malkin came back through the door. All eyes were on the woman, but she ignored the angry glances in favor of smiling at the young girl just in front of her.

"Here it is…"

Emily gasped at the gorgeous color of the cloak she was shown. A deep green that seemed to shift between emerald and black in waves as the light reflected off it. The inside was a cream color that complimented the dark outside perfectly. A muttered phrase from the seamstress had the cloak shimmering slightly. When her eyes were able to focus again, Emily saw that the cream lining had turned to fur of the same color and a trim decorating the hood around her face.

Emily was almost scared to try on the beautiful creation. She just knew that if the cloak settled around her shoulders she would not be able to take it off. Eventually though, the temptation was just too great. She let her fingers brush against the delicate material. When the fabric sat heavy on her shoulders she looked at her speechless reflection, reaching a delicate hand up to brush against the smooth, warm surface.

The green was dark enough that it brought out her pale skin while brightening her already bright eyes. The cream lining was only a touch darker than her skin but would go wonderfully with some of her darker dresses and outfits. It was a fair bit too big on her, but it could be hemmed and taken in, it would keep the sizing charm from wearing the fabric as fast.

She brushed her fingers along the soft green and took a deep breath. Preparing to turn down the marvelous cloak that was far outside her self-inflicted budget and probably a little more ostentatious than she needed. And she tried to avoid frivolous purchases. After convincing herself that she was making the right choice she took a deep breath.

"What a marvelous cloak, darling." And her mother walked in.

"Madame Malkin you have truly outdone yourself." Along with her father.

"I was thinking of your lovely daughter when I chose the colors. But I must say, it flatters her far more than even I expected."

"What do you think, Emily?"

Suddenly every single eye in the building was on her. She didn't even want to think of the price tag. Even if her parents could no doubt afford it- she really hated spending money on herself.

"It's really gorgeous, Madame. I don't know where I would possibly wear it, though. It would be a shame to let it sit in my closet until the sizing charm wears out."

"Nonsense. I'm sure you could find several occasions to wear it. It's possibly your best work yet, Madame. Can you send it to our home?"

The seamstress smiled, "I would be honored, Lady Potter."

Emily's mother turned expectant eyes on her and the girl could feel the slight reprimand behind the instructions.

"Thank you for the lovely cloak, Madame Malkin. I'm flattered that you would think of me while designing such wonderful creation."

"It's much easier to design with an inspired muse."

Emily accepted the comment with a nod and stepped down to find that Remus had already finished his own fitting. Emily herself had given the seamstress instructions that Remus was to have decent robes, not the best but better than he requested. She didn't want him to feel guilty or like he was a charity case. She just wanted to take care of her friends.

With a nod from Madame's assistant indicating that Remus' robes had been handled as she requested Emily lead the way out of the shop, hoping her mother would wait until they returned home to give her a lessons in the 'proper manners expected from a young lady of proper heritage'.

Unfortunately, it didn't look as though her mother was willing to oblige those plans. The Lady Potter was next to her within seconds of leaving the shop. Emily took a breath to prepare herself, and yet she was still unprepared for the voice that spoke next to her ear.

"Can we go to Flourish and Blott's next, Mrs. Potter? I still need to get my school books."

"Of course, Remus. Let's head that way now, shall we?"

The Gryffindor smiled at her before offering his arm to the young girl next to him with an exaggerated bow, "If I may Miss. Potter?"

She couldn't contain her giggle, "I would be honored, Mr. Lupin."

Their laughter echoed down the alley way and Emily gave him a smile and a warm thank you. She was not looking forward to a lecture in public, no matter how obscure or calm it might have been. Although she was quite sure she would still receive a lecture when she got home.

Madame Malkin was a close family friend after all. It would be rude to refuse something that she specifically made for them, no matter the cost. And it could reflect poorly on her entire business. It didn't matter than Emily didn't need another cloak. She was a Potter, she didn't need anything, she didn't want for anything. If she liked it, she did her best to get it.

And that was just one thing that Emily didn't necessarily agree with.

(0,0)

Emily once again travelled with her parents to Platform 9¾ to see James off to another year at Hogwarts. This time however she wasn't on the platform for long before Remus pulled her away with only enough of a greeting to her parents to be considered polite.

"Sorry, but you're later than I thought and there's someone who wanted to meet you. So we got to hurry before the train leaves."

The little girl gave her apologies repeatedly as the taller boy pulled at her leaving her to run into and trip over anyone and everyone waiting on the train. Finally, Remus slowed and brought Emily around him to face a girl with red hair and bright green eyes almost the same shade as her own.

"This is Lily. This is Emily." The girls smiled and nodded at each other failing to look anything but uncomfortable at least on Emily's end. She couldn't help at wondering how she and Lily could be sisters.

"Emily, this is Severus." Lily's words cut through her thoughts and Emily turned to face the boy she hadn't even noticed at first.

"Nice to meet you. Both of you, I'm Emily." She greeted him, taking in his shoulder length black hair and black eyes.

"So I've heard." His complete dead pan moment had Emily grinning.

"I suppose you did."

Lily cut in, "I hear you're coming to Hogwarts next year."

"That's right! I'm really excited. What are your favorite classes?" she made sure to include all of them in her question.

"Potions."

"Charms."

"Transfiguration."

"I love those, too. Although I personally think I'll be better at potions and charms."

She suddenly caught sight of Severus' raised eyebrow and blushed, "Well, I've loved reading about them so far. My parents won't let me try anything yet, though. But the theory is fascinating and I can't imagine that I wouldn't like the practical part of it."

"Many people think they'll enjoy something until they actually try it. Why would you be any different?"

Emily gave him a look that even she could feel the disbelief coming off of, "Because I refuse to define myself by the standard of others." Judging by the expressions around her, not many people talked back to Severus, "Besides- I've enjoyed hours of stumbling through reading material written in the blandest way possible. Why wouldn't I enjoy being able to apply my gained knowledge beyond the pages of my notes? It's not nearly as satisfying being clever unless everyone else knows it."

A smirk turned up one side of Severus' mouth, "You know- Despite the act you're small and thus far quite annoying, I believe I may learn to tolerate your presence."

"Oh goody, my dream has finally come true. I can die happy." She made sure to mimic Severus' flat expression as she spoke.

Her impression of the dour boy had everyone laughing and even Severus had an undeniable twitch of his lips.

"I take it back. I would hate to make someone else happy. It would totally ruin my reputation."

"Humph." Emily's pout drew even more laughter from the group. It wasn't long before all four of them were laughing (or chuckling on Severus' part).

The train's whistle echoed suddenly across the platform. Emily smiled at her new friends, raising a hand in farewell. She went to move away from the throng to say a final goodbye to her brother and find her parents.

Unfortunately, someone chose that moment to step on her cloak. Emily went tumbling to the ground before she could think to catch her balance. She let out a small squeak as she stumbled backward into a pair of arms. She glanced up to see Severus behind her.

"Thanks, Severus."

"Let's hope there isn't another time."

"I agree."

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY SISTER!"

Suddenly, Emily found the support behind her being shoved away. And she was surprised to find herself on the ground. She blinked up at Severus to find him standing face to face with her brother. Who had apparently shoved the other boy away from her.

"I would never touch _your_ sister. Anything with the name Potter has been contaminated by _you_ I prefer to remain a respectable human being."

Emily found herself in shock as so saying the boy moved over to her and extended his hand to help her up. She reached for his hand not thinking about it and was shoved away once again by her so-called protector.

"I just told you to leave my sister alone, Snivellus."

"What are you talking about?!"

Finally, Emily grabbed a hold of her senses and managed to shove herself up to her feet to stand between the two older boys. She looked quietly at everyone around her and tucked her head, "I think they're boarding the train."

Eventually the group around them moved away towards the train and they were left on the platform with just a few people. Emily turned to face her brother, still standing between him and Severus.

"Back off, James. He was just keeping me from embarrassing myself by falling on the ground."

"But he touched you, it's disgusting."

Black was standing next to him nodding and went to say something but quieted at the look Emily shot at him.

"You are being a brat. So far he's proving to be a better person than you are."

"And as for you," She turned to face the other boy, "Thank you for helping me. But just so we're clear- it is considered rude to insult someone's family name. Emily Potter at your service and I find your comment very offensive and would prefer you keep any further comments to yourself. My brother does not represent my family any more than you represent the entirety of yours."

"I'm sorry if my plebian half-blood words offended the noble Potter blood."

Emily lost any hint of teasing she may have had, "Congratulations. You just managed to sink below the level of your opponent. In case you're wondering, that means you're as big of an arse as both he and Black. I didn't know that was possible."

James smirked at Severus, "Congratulations, Snivellus. You now have one more person who hates you."

"Shut up, James." The boy turned shocked to his sister.

"Goodbye Remus, Lily. I hope you guys have a great year. Write to me okay? I'd like to get to know you better. Goodbye Severus. I hope you learn some manners over the next year and you do really well in potions. James, Black, Have a great year and grow up if you could. Now, I believe you're about to miss your train."

She was very proud of herself for managing the situation without drawing unnecessary attention to their little group. As the rest of them moved onto the train, she got a brief hug from Lily and Remus, before heading back to where her parents were waiting.

"Did you get along with James' friends?"

"Mostly. There seems to be a few of them who are a little more immature than others."

"There are always a few, Ems, always a few." She smiled at her father's words.

(0,0)

Emily stared blankly out her window.

She had just finished her response to Lily's latest letter. The girl took great joy in writing to her to complain about James and Black. She also talked a lot about Remus, Severus, and a few of the other girls' in her year. She had a lot of friends in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, not to mention Severus who she learned was in Slytherin.

Her brother had kindly mentioned that and every other possible 'fault' that he thought Severus 'Snivellus' Snape had in one of his letters. He was a Slytherin. He had greasy hair. He liked to read in the library. He was a Slytherin. He lived in the dungeons. He was always snarky.

After said letter Emily had written back reminding him that their mother was a Slytherin. Half of their family were Slytherin's. And that James needed to grow up and pick up a book of his own once in a while and stop living with his head in the clouds. He hadn't been very happy with that response

James had written her another two times since the beginning of the school year. Which was almost three months ago. A far cry was the nine or ten times he had written their parents. She was really starting to miss the days before he had decided Black was his new best friend. The only thing she was glad of at the moment was that the semester ended in a few days and James would be home for the Yule celebration then. It would be nice to see him.

(0,0)

"What do you mean?"

"James asked to stay with the Black's for Yule. We decided it would be good for him to spend time with another part of the family. And we were asked to join them for their actual celebration."

"Oh." Emily straightened her back and looked at her parents, "Alright. I'm going to write to some of my friends and head to bed. Good night."

"Good night, dear." Her parents chorused at her as the young girl left the room.

The tears didn't slip down her cheeks until she was leaning against her closed door, her face hidden in her knees.

"He could have at least written me…"

(0,0)

"Did you have a good time, Ems?" Emily looked up at her father after they returned from the Black's Yule celebration.

Truthfully, she didn't remember much of what had happened that day. She spent most of it trying to get her brother's attention and glaring at Black.

"I did. It was nice to see Andy, Cissy, and Bella again. Even Regulus was fun today, it was nice to see at least one boy can act mature on occasion."

Her father laughed, "Don't be fooled, Emmy. It's amazing what some people can fool you into thinking."

"I did say 'act' mature."

"That you did. Good night, sweetie."

(0,0)

 _'Miss. Potter,_

 _'Lily informs me that my actions towards you on the day of September 1_ _st_ _were highly inappropriate. She also encouraged me to write to you and inform you of my own feelings on the matter._

 _'I was highly unprepared to face a Potter who was decent after my experiences with your brother for the past year. I admit I did not react in an appropriate manner regarding the situation. I allowed your brother to upset me and I apologize for any offense I may have unwittingly caused you. I meant to anger your brother and had no intention of insulting your person._

 _'I realize this does not render my actions appropriate nor does it deem them forgivable. That being said I hope to receive the honor of your company in the future and to begin a correspondence with you in the up coming months._

 _'I hope you had an enjoyable holiday,_

 _'Severus Snape.'_

(0,0)

 _'Severus,_

 _'I understand that my brother can be rather frustrating. Especially in his moments of uncomparable idiocy. That being said, I cannot forgive you for insulting my family when you had only experienced the company of a single member, no matter how incorrigible that member may be. However, I would welcome the continuance of our correspondence so long as we can dispense of the formalities._

 _'My name is Emily and you are more than welcome to use it. I hope you're holidays were also enjoyable, I hear that you celebrated at the castle? I'm afraid that you are one of Lily's favorite topics in her letters. How was that?_

 _'Hope to hear from you soon,_

 _'Emily Potter'_

(0,0)

After that Emily was writing back and forth with several people. Severus was only writing her every couple of weeks but he always wrote long letters, or long comparably anyway. Remus and Lily wrote to her more often, but it was usually really brief notes about something interesting they had learned in class or something funny that had happened with one of the students. She even heard from Black a couple of times during the year, almost as much as James.

Eventually there came a week when she was told by three of her correspondents that she shouldn't expect a letter for a few weeks. They were all reviewing for their finals and Emily could not fault them for choosing their studies over writing to her. Plus, she could always write to them more over the summer.

Two weeks letter came a brief note from James:

 _'I hate finals. I'm so glad they're almost over. Lily and Remus have been studying for weeks now. I've barely had a chance to talk to them. Not that Lily talks to me very often any way… But you know what I mean. I can't wait to come home._

 _'Sorry about not writing more. See you in a few days._

 _'Love you,_

 _'James_

 _'Oh and I learned a few tricks on the team this year. I might even give you a run for your money this summer.'_

Emily smiled to herself. James had written to her. He was coming home for the holidays. With any luck this would be more like it used to be between them. All smiles and laughter and no friends to ruin it. Only annoying cousins they had to put up with on occasion.

Besides that, she had friends to write to for the first time ever. Even if they were all James' age, it was nice to have friends of her own. (And yes, she was claiming Remus. James still hadn't figured out that he was a werewolf. Friends couldn't possibly be that oblivious.)

Her last summer before she got to join James at Hogwarts, finally able to use magic the way she wanted to rather than the random accidental kind that seemed to surround her. This was going to be the best year yet!

 **Hey everyone! Sorry about the lack of updating going on. I was trying to update both of my stories once a week but I'm working nearly forty hours a week now and I also do a lot of volunteering not to mention my own interests outside of both of those and trying to figure out school work. Plus I actually am trying to have a social life (it's an experiment at the moment and so far being social beyond the realm of my computer is proving to be a waste of time and energy-but I'll keep you posted on my progress) Thanks to everyone who read the first chapter and I hope to hear from more of you, especially since I've never written anything like this before.**

 **I also need votes on where Emily should be sorted. She can kind of go anywhere at the moment and I sort of have an idea but I would love to hear your thoughts. The next chapter will be a little more exciting since Emily will actually be in school, instead of just writing letters and eating with her parents.**

 **Love to everyone!**


	3. Emily's Up Next

He had sent her a note the night before promising her a present. She was determined to play that up as the reason she was excited to see him. But truthfully, she just wanted to see James. She felt like a lot had changed since he went to Hogwarts and she wanted to fix that.

This summer, Black had been banned from spending more than two weeks at the Potter Manor and Emily could honestly say she was happy about that. This summer it could be just her and James as it was before. They could have one more summer together before she joined him at Hogwarts.

Attempting to maintain dignity, Emily stayed by her parents until James' messy head of hair came into sight along with the sandy hair of Remus. Before she could think better of it, Emily took off towards her brother.

"Jamie!"

Her brother laughed but caught her up in a hug, "Hey, Ems! If I didn't know better, I would think you were happy to see me.

Emily flicked her hair back over her shoulder and affected a haughty air, "Never. I am merely in it for the presents. Speaking of… Gimme!"

A few other voices joined James as he laughed at her antics and that was when Emily noticed that Lily had joined them along with Pettigrew (Emily could honestly say that she didn't know the other boy and she didn't like him either). Severus was even there, albeit at a respectable distance.

She was distracted from her people watching by a paper bag that was suddenly swinging in front of her face. The ten year old quickly grabbed the offered package and opened it up to look inside. Recognizing the bag to be from Honeyduke's (James had apparently decided that breaking rules wasn't going to be a problem and had snuck out practically every Hogsmeade weekend since the beginning of the term) Emily was eager to look inside. They had some of her favorite candies in that shop. Like sugar quills, chocoballs, and peppermint toads. Of course they also had some of her least favorites like blood pops, jelly slugs and…

Salt water taffy. Emily looked at the candy in her hand and laughed. Of course her brother would bring her the one candy she can't stand as a joke. It was chewy and salty which she hated, everyone knew she hated.

She laughed and dropped the candy back into the bag, "Haha, James. Very funny. Now where's my real present?"

James' smile faded slightly, "What do you mean? You don't like it?"

"Of course I d-" Emily's smile grew forced as she realized her brother wasn't joking, "I do. I just expected more from a brother to his favorite sister! Don't I count for anything?"

Laughter fell from James' lips and he left the group saying something about a few goodbyes he had to take care of. Emily nodded at him and turned to say a hello and goodbye to the group around her, only to see concerned expressions.

"What?"

Lily smiled gently at her, "He was really distracted during finals this year, and with Remus constantly asking him to get taffy, it's no wonder he got confused."

"Don't put this on me! It's not my fault Black made sure to eat all of the good candy on the way here!"

More laughter rang out and Emily managed a genuine smile.

"It's no worries. I'm sure he'll feel bad about it later."

Lily and Remus pretended to agree with her while Severus just snorted.

The other girl smiled at her before suddenly letting out a little squeal, "I brought these for you! I grabbed it while I was on vacation with my parents over Christmas. It was supposed to be for your birthday but I honestly don't know how much longer the stasis spell will last, and I don't think my parents would be too happy with a…Anyway- And since I can't redo the spell now… Just open it, okay?"

Emily played with the edges of the box that was unceremoniously shoved into her hands, "Should I? What could it be?"

Even that teasing seemed to be too much for the red head. She was bouncing on her toes, eyes never straying from the box in the younger girl's hands. Emily giggled at the older girl, who scowled at her in return.

"Just open the box, Emily!"

She giggled again, not really wanting to wait any longer herself. Carefully she untied the ribbon, noting the holes in the top of the decorative box. Curiosity growing, Emily pulled the lid from the box and gasped at what she saw in there. She reached a careful hand out, the instant her hand broke the perimeter of the spell, large yellow eyes turned to look at her.

"Oh! She's beautiful! I can't accept this, Lily. She must have cost you so much…"

"Not too much. And you can't give her back because my parents won't let me keep her and I already got the okay from your parents for you to have her. And-"

Severus cut in before her rant could go on much longer, "And if you don't accept it, Lily is just going to talk until you accept merely to shut her up. So save us all the ear ache and just say thank you."

Lily turned her glare onto Snape who merely smirked as Remus and Emily began laughing at the two of them.

"Thank you, Lily. She really is a gorgeous owl."

The red head blushed and ducked her head, much to the amusement of the two boys with them. Eventually though, James was making his way back to the group and Lily's parents were waiting for her. Severus moved forward and gave Emily a slight bow, which she returned in the form of a curtsy. Remus rolled his eyes before gathering Emily up in a hug.

"Have a great summer, okay? Don't forget to write."

"At least once a week, promise."

Remus smiled and stepped back to let Lily attack the smaller girl. Their goodbyes were said and letters were promised before the red head ran off to go meet her parents. Which was about the time that James appeared.

"Where'd Lily go?"

"Home."

"Oh…"

Remus looked at Emily and they rolled their eyes, "Come on then, Mom and Dad are waiting for us."

The brother and sister waved at their friend as they walked across the considerably cleared platform.

(0,0)

 _'Lily,_

 _'You'll never guess who picked_ _tomorrow_ _to start his week long visit. Why couldn't he have come yesterday? Or better yet next week? It doesn't seem fair that day is going to be shared with him. But knowing Black that's why he planned it that way._

 _'Anyway, everything's going well here. James has been fretting over whether or not to write you a letter this summer. I haven't told him that I'm writing you. I don't know how he would react to that._

 _'Is Petunia being better to you? I'm sorry to hear that she's being horrid about your magic. I know that siblings can be horrible when it comes to each other. Hopefully she'll come around. She is your sister after all._

 _'I'm going to leave if off here, Hedwig is really excited to deliver her first letter, it only seemed fitting that it would go to you._

 _'Hope you are enjoying your summer,_

 _'Emily'_

The youngest Potter watched as her owl flew off with her letter. Her thoughts lingered on what she was feeling about Black and him attempting to sabotage her birthday.

She shook her head that was ridiculous. Black wasn't her favorite person and she was sure she didn't rank on her scale either, but come on! This is just getting ridiculous. There was no way he planned to come out on her birthday just to ruin it.

Most likely scenario was that he had actually just forgotten that tomorrow was her birthday. Or he was going to show up and pretend that he forgot. But either way, he wouldn't do something to deliberately sabotage her party. She didn't rank high enough on his scale of importance to sabotage her.

With that in mind, she waved goodbye at the white dot that was her new friend and slipped out of her room and down to breakfast.

"Good morning, Ems!"

"Morning Mom, Dad." She walked over and gave them both a hug.

Emily settled at the table with a bowl of oatmeal topped with strawberries and honey. She eagerly dug into her breakfast and joined her parents' conversation. They were unofficially planning their shopping trip for Emily's school supplies and James'. Since she hadn't gotten said letter, everything was 'theoretical' her mom was against jinxing anything.

"Good morning, James."

The appearance of her brother brought a halt to the conversation. They all took the grunt sent their way as a 'Good morning to you as well, my lovely family' or something along those lines.

(0,0)

 _'Emily,_

 _'It really doesn't surprise me that he would try to step on your toes like that. Black has acted like a child since I met him and, according to you, even longer than that. I am rather ashamed on his behalf though. It sounds like eleventh birthdays are an important day in wizarding culture and I can understand why. That is so rude of him!_

 _'Anyway, I'm doing alright. Tuney is still being righteous about this and determined to prove that she's better than me even if I do have magic. There are some days I wish that we could be friends again, like we used to be, but I don't think I could ever wish that I didn't have magic._

 _'I was really glad to see Hedwig (and that really is an amazing name for her) and honored to be her first delivery! I may write to James in a few days… maybe. I don't really want to be his friend, but I want to be yours, do you want me to write to him?_

 _'Have a happy birthday,_

 _'Lily'_

Emily couldn't help snorting at the last line in the letter, she didn't want Lily to be James' friend either, even if she did want him to stop whining about everything. She ran the feathered tip of her quill over her bottom lip a few times before deciding what the best solution would be.

 _'Lily,_

 _'It is rude, but mostly I'm just sad about it. When James got his letter there were hugs and laughter all around and while I may get a few congratulations this year, it won't be the same since Black is going to be here. I'll still get a party with the family, so that will be nice. It's just…not fair._

 _'But that is enough of my sob story (although I really want to tell you the story about how he put wizard's paint in my hair this morning! Thankfully, it was the children friendly one so it comes out of practically anything, but mother was still furious!) I'm sorry to hear about Tuney, but maybe she will come around. It may not be the same as it was, but she'll get used to it, I'm sure! I loved hearing some of your stories about her, it would be nice to meet your sister if she was like she is in your stories._

 _'I don't actually think you should write to him. At least not first. Maybe if he finally gets up the courage to write you (some Gryffindor he is) then you can decide if you want to write back, but I selfishly want to keep you to myself a little longer. It's nice to have friends who aren't James' friends who occasionally say something to me because they feel guilty. Or his friends who seem to be scared of me (I once 'accidentally' knocked one of them of their broom. He only fell a few feet and the bush broke his fall. Unfortunately for him, it was a rose bush. Oops?)_

 _'Thank you, it's almost eleven here so I better send this off and get to bed! It wouldn't do to be exhausted tomorrow!_

 _'Hugs,_

 _'Emily'_

(0,0)

Emily's 11th birthday was supposed to be a day of excitement. She woke early on the 31st of July and found herself in a room filled with owls hooting in her direction, all of them carried a letter and most of them had packages tied to their legs as well. Emily hurried to untie the birds from their burdens.

She made sure each owl got a treat and the chance for water, leaving the window open in case any of them decided to leave now that their gift had been delivered. Two or three of them took that offer and Emily set those packages to be answered last. They were obviously not expecting a reply, she had best start with those that were.

Emily was shocked to see the letters before her.

Remus. Severus. Lily. Regulus. Cissy, Bella, and Andy. All of her friends had written to her. Even those who she hadn't talked to since Yule. She smiled gently to herself as her fingers brushed over the parchment tentatively, almost afraid they were going to disappear when she touched them. But the letters stayed in front of her eyes all bearing cheerful letters curling around themselves and forming her name.

Eventually she talked herself into opening the first one that was awaiting a response in return. It was from Andy and her sisters. Andy was the female Black closest to her in age, but the girl was still 9 years older than her. It was hard for them to connect at all, they usually treated Emily as either a doll or someone to babysit.

This was one of the few times she had received a gift from them. She tore the brown paper of carefully, somewhat afraid of what she would find inside the small box. She gasped quietly as she pulled up the delicate silver chain. Gently fingering the charm that hung heavily at the bottom. It was a beautiful necklace with the Black coat of arms.

A small note fell out with the necklace, _'This goes to the youngest Black girl in the family. Andy declared that she felt you were as much a Black as we are with your mother and all. So we are proud to pass this charm onto you. Congratulations on this wonderful day, sister.'_

Emily was shocked to say the least. Her brain needing a few moments to understand even as her fingers undid the clasp and settled the necklace over her head. Brushing her fingers over the charm that now rested between her collar bones she reached for a quill and began penning a thank you note to the Black sisters.

By the time she had finished the note she saw that it was nearly eight o'clock in the morning. If she expected to get any breakfast with the teenage boys hanging around she would have to be downstairs soon. She sent off the letter to her cousins and hurried down the stairs, barely noticing the pendant now bouncing against her chest.

(0,0)

Thankfully, neither of the boys were awake when Emily walked through the doors. She was greeted by her parents with a warm hug and birthday wishes that made her smile and think that maybe today wouldn't be so bad. Even if Black was here for the sole purpose of overshadowing her special day. Breakfast appeared and Emily was ecstatic to see waffles along the usual spread. They were her favorite.

James appeared a few minutes after they all sat down to eat. And gave his sister a huge smile when the door remained closed behind him. He bent over to give her a hug before taking his seat next to her with a grin.

"James?" Her mother asked the question they were all wondering, "Where's Sirius?"

The boy shrugged, "Dunno. I guess I just forgot to wake him up this morning. Ah well. I guess we'll just have to save him something for later. Happy birthday, Emsy."

"Thanks, Jamie."

He smirked a little and piled his plate high. Emily couldn't even find it in herself to be upset when James stole three of her waffles. She still had two and James deserved it. How many brothers abandoned their best friends for their little sister's birthday?

They all settled around the table and Emily enjoyed a nice simple birthday breakfast with her family for the first time in what felt like forever. Especially since Black didn't come down until the table was cleared and they were all settled in the parlor, Emily opening the few gifts her parents had gifted her with for the occasion.

The first paper wrapped package she tore into contained a familiar green and cream cloak. Her laugh bubbled out of her throat as she looked at her parents.

"I was wondering where that had gone…"

"Yes, we decided it wasn't necessary for you to have a new cloak. But a girl doesn't turn 11 every day, you know. It seemed a good reason for a little extravagance."

Her green eyes looked up into her mother's and she gave a solemn nod, "What a wonderful thought, thank you for the lovely and quite unexpected gift."

Everyone chuckled lightly at the formal words and Emily happily pulled the cloak over her shoulders before she opened her next gift. James gave her a necklace and hair clasp that had a gorgeous dragon fly design in blue and green. She smiled and clasped the black ribbon behind her neck letting it rest just below her collar bones, settling right under the Black coat of arms. She gave her brother a huge hug and then began to pout when he messed up her hair. Running his hand through it.

That was about when Black walked in, "James Potter! How could you let me sleep through breakfast. Don't you realize that's the most important part of the day?!"

The Black heir at least had the decency to blush as he took in the family scene he had barged in on. He looked at the torn paper that now decorated the floor and almost paled as he added two and two and got four.

"Is today your birthday, Emily?"

She felt her forehead crease in a frown as she nodded, "Yes."

"I… I had no idea. I can go if you like? So you can celebrate with your family?"

James was the one to speak up, "I told you her birthday was on the 31st when you asked to come over."

"I though you meant last month or maybe even next month."

Green eyes careful scrutinized his face for any deceit or trickery, but it seemed the boy truly had thought her birthday was some other day. She thought about it for a moment before nodding to a thought in her head.

"I see no reason for you to leave. The house elves are keeping a plate of food warm for you."

He gave her a thankful smile, and Emily returned it. Maybe he wasn't as horrible as she thought. Brothers and their friends were supposed to tease the younger sister, right?

And then he saw the pendant hanging just visible beneath the cloak she'd clasped.

"That necklace looks like…"Black's face grew cold, "Why do you have a black family heirloom?"

Her mom's eyes followed Black's to the necklace around her daughter's neck, "Why do you have that? It's supposed to go to Andromeda…"

"The girls all sent it to me. Andy said that I was as much a Black as they were. Apparently it's supposed to go to the youngest girl in the family. So they decided to send it to me. Should I send it back? I haven't sent the letter thanking them for it, yet…"

Her mother shook her head with a quiet, "Of course not."

Meanwhile Black shouted his own opinion, "Yes you should! It's not yours. You're a Potter not a Black and you don't get to wear our family name!"

James frowned, "I thought you didn't get along with your family."

"I don't! But this is uncalled for, just because I don't like them doesn't mean I'm not one of them! People still treat me like a Black and I refuse to be tied to her!"

Emily said nothing. All good will for the older boy gone in an instant.

Instead she reached for the next package, a small flat one wrapped in brown wrapping. She opened it ignoring Black's speech to find a stack of papers in an envelope. Frowning she saw her name but noted that it was to be opened by her parents. With a curious look she handed the papers to her parents to look at.

Black's voice immediately trailed to a halt as he took in the obvious Black seal on that paper as well.

"Please tell me that's not what I think it is?"

Her father's eyes narrowed as he skimmed over it. He started muttering under his breath and probably would have done something regrettable had he not realized all eyes were on him

"What is it, Father?"

"Never mind, Emily. It's not an appropriate gift for you, much less on this day. I'll deal with it, but we won't accept it so you don't have to worry."

James started to say something but was cut off by his friend, "Oh thank goodness. I'll go grab that breakfast now then."

They watched in shock as their mother glared at the future Black heir, "Never mind him. We'll tell you both tomorrow, today is for only good things."

The two siblings shared a look and nodded. If their mother was glaring at someone it probably was not something they wanted to know about anyway.

Without preamble a house elf popped into their presence, "Would Miss Emily be liking her other presents as well? Mimsy could be bringing them down."

"That would be wonderful! Thank you, Mimsy!"

The elf gave a little curtsy before popping away, reappearing with the gifts from her friends.

"If little miss be needing anything else, Mimsy be but a call away. Happy Birthday, Miss Emily!"

"Thank you again, Mimsy!"

With that the elf popped back to the kitchens and Emily got to face the surprised looks from her parents, "What?"

"Who are those all from, sweetie?"

"My friends, or the ones I stole from James anyway. Remus, Lily, Severus, and even Regulus."

The now eleven year old could have sworn she saw her parents flinch at the last name, but dismissed it as a coincidence or her overactive imagination.

"Oh and the present from the Black sisters. Which was really nice of them."

Her father placed a hand on her mother's knee before gesturing with his other hand, "Well I guess you better get to opening then."

She sent him a quick smile before tearing open the paper. A charms book, a beautiful green headband (it was a muggle trend that Emily simply loved), and some owl treats from Lily. A transfiguration book, with chocolate, chocolate, and sugar quills from Remus (he really was a horrible enabler). From Severus she got a letter stating he might be willing to allow her in his presence the following year along with a potions book that he had taken the time to fill in with his own opinions and notes on how and why things worked. It was a second hand book which she attributed to the aloofness in the letter, he was probably embarrassed, but she thought it was one of the nicest presents she had gotten since he obviously took the time with it to make it something special.

Regulus' gift on the other hand was confusing to say the least. There was no book, unsurprising seeing as that family usually frowned upon her reading so much. But there was a ring. A simple ring, black with a red stone in the center, it wasn't a ruby but she wasn't sure what it was. The confusing part was that the letter and the ring were both snatched out of her hands by her mother and banished.

"Mom?"

"We'll explain tomorrow. I just sent it back to his parents, maybe you can get it when you're older."

She nodded slowly trying to put all of the pieces together to understand what was going on. But she was obviously missing something… Her parents left the room after she finished opening the last gift, a stationary set that had the Potter coat of arms at the bottom and snitches flitting around roses along the edges, along with a wax seal and some quills. And it all came in a nice little kit she could take to Hogwarts with her.

"I still can't believe that Snivellus thought you'd like such a filthy piece of trash. Look it's all written in and everything."

Emily turned to see him holding her gift like it was going to bite him and give him rabies or something. And moving it towards the fire.

"No, James, it's fine I like it. Just give it back."

"Look, Emily. I get you don't want to hurt his feelings, but you really don't need to keep something when it's obviously beneath you."

"James. Don't. Don't!" The book fell from his fingers, "No!"

A burst of wind filled the room, the fire disappearing in a torrent of smoke and James thrown against a wall. A shelf fell above him and a huge crash echoed through the manor.

"James! Emily!" her mother and father rushed into the room, worry clearly etched into their features.

Emily stared in shock at the mess she had created. Her mother's cry had her moving across the room towards her brother.

"James?! James! I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean too!"

Her father pulled her gently away while her mother ran a few charms over him. Emily let out a breath of relief when her mother's own shoulders relaxed.

"He's fine. He's unconscious, but he's fine. He just hit his head."

Just then, he opened his eyes, blinking at them in confusion, "Mum? Dad? What happened?"

With that all eyes turned to Emily, "We were just wondering the same thing…"

She could feel that she was pale and a little shaky. She hadn't had a burst of accidental magic that bad in years. Since James stole her stuffed dragon when she was six.

"He was going to burn my book, cause it was from Severus. I didn't mean to. I just wanted to be able to read it. Lily says he's like a potion prodigy. And James was going to throw it in the fire and I panicked. I didn't mean to!"

Her father pulled her closer to him, "You can't help your accidental magic, it happens. James' shouldn't have been attempting to burn any of your gifts. It's not okay, you're not going to be allowed to fly for a week or so, but that's it. Deep breaths."

It was then Emily realized she wasn't breathing. She really did hate it when she hurt people, at least when it was an accident. Dropping a jerk on a rosebush she had no problem with. A few breaths later her breathing was under control and she squeezed her father's hand to let him know she was better.

He returned the pressure before turning to his son, "Why exactly did you feel it appropriate to try and burn one of your sister's gifts? And don't tell me you weren't going to, I can see it on the hearth at the moment."

"It's from Snivellus. He's a horrible little Slytherin who's always getting us into trouble at school. He's corrupted Lily and now he's trying the same thing with Ems and I'm not going to allow it!"

"Snivellus?"

Emily glared at her brother, "His name is 'Severus' he's a half-blood and because he's poor James and his friends torture him. Starting with that horrid name!"

"He deserves it!"

"No one deserves to be treated horribly. He can't change his parents anymore than you can!"

Their father cut them off with a harsh look, "What exactly has he done to deserve the way you treat him?"

"He's nasty. He knows all these horrid spells and he uses them on us all the time, but whenever we retaliate we get detention. Plus he's always giving Lily these horrid looks, he doesn't take care of himself either, he's always greasy and gross plus he's just creepy!"

"Severus only attacks you because you attack him. And don't talk about him that way. He spends all of his free time with his potions, of course his hair is going to be greasy!"

No it was their mother's turn to frown, "So you don't like him because he's different and doesn't look the same as you think he should?"

"I thought we taught you better than that, James."

The boy huffed, clearly thinking everyone else was being unfair, but Emily had gotten enough letters from Lily and Severus to know that they really were just bullying the other boy and it really needed to stop.

But just watching her mother and father talking she could see her brother wasn't taking anything they were saying seriously. Not even that he was damaging their family name. He just didn't care.

Eventually they must have realized it to, they gave in with a sigh and turned back to Emily. She lifted the book from the ashes carefully, it didn't look like it had been damaged at all, for which she was grateful. Her parents probably could have fixed it but a lot of Severus' notes would have been lost.

They herded her out to the garden where they continued the celebration leaving James' and Black to do whatever they wanted to inside. But try as they might they couldn't quite dispel the solemn atmosphere that had developed. The only thing that managed to lift it was the sight of a Hogwarts owl and the letter clasped within his talons.

Emily was officially going to Hogwarts next year.

(0,0)

"I thought we wanted to be there by ten?"

Her mother gave her a look, "It's going to take all of five seconds to floo through, young lady. It's not even nine thirty yet."

Emily groaned and earned a lecture from her mother on which habits were not lady-like…again.

She didn't understand why she had to be proper at home. Her family weren't going to gossip about her and ruin their family name, were they? That would be…what was that saying…cutting of the nose to suit the face?... No that wasn't it. She would have to ask Lily when she saw her again.

"I'm sorry, mother. I just want to go get my stuff. I finally get to get my wand today!"

"I know, I know. How about this, we'll head out and get your wand now. Then we'll meet your father and brother at the Leaky Cauldron at ten. Will that suit you?"

"Really?!"

When her mother nodded her ascent she soon found herself being squeezed to death by the eleven year old.

"I'll go tell James and grab my cloak!"

(0,0)

The girl stepped into the dark shop. She didn't get to do this part with her brother, it was tradition that they only went with one other person. Her father went with James, now it was her and her mother. She wondered why he didn't use a simple cleaning charm to remove all of the dust.

But maybe the magic interfered with the wands. There were spider webs in the corner and the silence was beyond eerie. The boxes upon boxes stacked upon the shelves tempted her. Each of them held a wand that would be uniquely suited to a single wizard or witch. They may be here for a day or for a century. No wand could be forced to choose a master. And until the day their caster arrived they would sit patiently on the shelf in their little box, just waiting.

Lost in her thoughts she didn't see Mr. Ollivander until the man stood right in front of her. The unblinking eyes were pale in his pale face and for a moment she wondered if he was blind. But then they latched onto her with a fixedness that was usually reserved for predators.

She shivered involuntarily.

"Good morning, Emily Rose Potter. Eager to find your wand, I see."

"Good morning, Mr. Ollivander, and I was having a little bit of a hard time waiting."

She could hear her mother's lady like cough behind her and the old man gave a knowing smile, "So I see."

She blushed and looked down at her feet.

"Hold out your arm, please."

The measuring tape, much like Madame Malkin's flitted around her measuring everything from her finger length to the width of her knee. She didn't even notice Mr. Ollivander had moved away until his voice spoke from across the room.

"That should be fine."

A few seconds later he appeared with three boxes in his hands, "One of these ought to do it I believe."

He handed her the first wand and the piece of paper on the table burst into instantaneous flames.

"I don't believe that's quite what we're looking for here…"

(0,0)

Twenty minutes, several destroyed display cases, four armloads, and three frustrated people later, Ollivander returned with one single box.

He carefully set it on the counter looking as though he was regretting even bringing it out. He gently lifted it from the box and handed it to her looking uncertain to say the least. A little worried but trusting he would not risk hurting a customer she gripped the end.

It felt as though a refreshing breeze cooled her skin and freshened the room. Her green eyes closed as she enjoyed the sensation and the smells that filled her senses. It was as if she was standing in a forest, bare feet in a mountain stream while the sun warmed her. Perfectly balanced, perfectly right. She opened her eyes to see a fading glow over her skin and sparkles falling from the tip of her wand.

"I never meant to make this wand. The core was an accident. A clumsy apprentice and too little time to focus. But the wand was created and it has sat on a shelf in my office for decades. I never meant to make it, and I never dreamed of selling it."

He looked over at her mother and lowered his voice.

"This wand is 12 ¼ inches, ebony, and quite springy. The length shows a strong personality, the flexibility a sense of your own. Not common together but not unheard of either. What makes it special is that it does not contain a single core. A phoenix feather was meant to be the core, but it was tangled with a unicorn tail. So thus you have two cores."

He glanced at her still waiting mother once again, "I expect great outcomes with this wand, phoenix feathers are not everyday sights, neither is unicorn. I doubt this wand will ever work for any one else. Keep it close. And keep it safe."

The man disappeared. She glanced down at the wand, it was truly beautiful. The handle was decorated with vines that fit perfectly within the lines of her hands the grip swooping around marked with a single rose at the bottom, unnoticeable unless you were looking. The top of the handle was designed to accentuate the highlights of the wood.

This was it, she finally had her wand. Her mother frowned when Emily admitted she did not know how much Mr. Ollivander wanted for the wand. She ended up paying what it cost her for James' wand three years ago, five galleons. As they left the building, many eyes fell on them, but Emily couldn't get over the fact she was carryng her own wand.

"Tell me about your wand? Ebony, right?"

Emily was so excited she completely missed the concerned look from her mother, "Yes, and it's quite flexible which Mr. Ollivander said was rare. He also said I have a long wand compared to others. He said it's a sign of a strong personality."

"That is one thing I can definitely say you have in spades. What's the core?"

"A phoenix feather." She wanted to say unicorn hair, but she couldn't. Something Mr. Ollivander had said made her think that was something that should be kept between her and him. At least for now.

"A good core. It shows a large magical potential."

She smiled and gripped her wand a little more tightly, "I can't believe I finally have my own wand…"

Her mother gave her an understanding smile before holding her hand out, "You're going to have to believe it, because I'll need to take it from you while you wander Diagon."

"But, mum!"

"None of that. We're going into the Leaky Cauldron to meet your brother and father and I would rather take it now than wait."

She nodded slightly and handed her beautiful wand over to her mother for safe keeping. She tracked it sadly into her mother's cloak pocket where it rested just behind her mother's own wand.

"Enough pouting. We have guests to greet."

"They're not our guests just because they're here when we are, mum."

The smirk her mother cast was a little scary to be honest, "Aren't they?"

Those last words were made even more dramatic by her sudden disappearance behind the door that led into the pub. Emily moved reluctantly after her mother, not sure whether to be excited or scared by the woman's words. Her entrance was careful as she peaked around the corner. Seeing nothing suspicious she stepped through the door, only to be tackled by two slightly older bodies.

"Happy Birthday!"

Her eyes widened when she saw the people standing in front of her, "Lily, Remus! What are you all doing here?!"

Everyone started talking at once, Emily deduced that her mother had invited them to celebrate her birthday and first year at Hogwarts. It was a low drawl that drew her attention.

"I do recall being included in this outing, I would appreciate it if my presence was noticed."

"Severus! That's what you get for hiding in the corner, you know. I couldn't see you behind James' ever increasing ego."

"Ha-bloody-ha."

"James Potter! Watch your mouth."

The boy rolled his eyes, "Yes, mother."

A yelp quickly followed his words, "And don't even think about rolling your eyes at me. No matter which way you face I can tell, trust me."

The teen rubbed his rear where the spell had hit, blushing at the giggles from everyone else, even Severus was chuckling, which only made it that much worse.

"He's just a pathetic worm who's only able to give others cheap hand me downs as gifts. Even to a recipient who would rather throw it in the fire than touch it."

His words were too quiet for the adults to hear but every one of the kids heard them quite plainly. Lily glared at him and started to pull Severus away, probably trying to convince him that James might have thought it stupid but Emily never would have. Meanwhile, Emily was just staring at him.

"What?!" He practically snarled at her and she took a step back before frowning at him.

"When did you get so mean?"

Before he could respond she hurried out of the crowd after the other three. Leaving her brother to wander with her parents, not a word was spoken by him the rest of the day. Charlus and Dorea shared many worried glances. They knew their kids wouldn't be as close as they had been before James started at Hogwarts, but this rift was more than they could have anticipated. It would probably be easier now that they would both be there.

Hopefully.

But at least Emily was having a wonderful time with her friends. James and Charlus were still betting that she would end up in Gryffindor. But with every day that passed Dorea believed it less and less likely. Or if she did it wouldn't be the hat's first choice. Despite her husband's thoughts she had a pretty good idea that red wouldn't be in her daughter's future, and after all mother knows best.

(0,0)

Emily rushed towards the platform, her cart in front of her with a slightly worrisome grin on her face. Honestly it was kind of terrifying. Some of the muggles apparently thought so too because most people started walking the other way.

Her father managed to catch her only moments before she ran straight through to platform 9 ¾.

"Dad!"

"Emily." She folded her arms over her chest and the man shook his head of messy black hair, "I know you're excited but you were attracting far too much attention. We need to be calm remember?"

The eleven year old took a breath and reached for her father's offered hand, "Yes, father."

"Now let's try this again shall we?"

Calmly, both of them began to push the trolley towards the barrier. There was some laughter between them as they tried to drive in a straight line. The few muggles who had been watching them smiled at the pair before turning away. It was good to see a man bonding with his daughter. Which meant that if they did happen to see the pair disappear inches from where they were standing- they passed it off as some fun and a trick of the light.

She'd barely made it through the gate when she was suddenly swarmed and dragged towards the train.

The laughter bubbled up out of her as she tried to escape from the grabby hands, "Guys! I have to say goodbye first!"

Lily threw her the best puppy dog eyes, pouting slightly, "But you're already late! We're never going to get to sit together at this rate! Don't you want to sit with us?!"

"Of course I do." The other girl smiled, "But I'm also sure that Severus has already claimed us a space."

Remus chuckled and released one of Emily's arms, "She's right you know. It'll just take a few minutes, besides it's not like you didn't spend ten saying goodbye to your parents five seconds ago."

The red head threw her hands in the air, "Ugh fine! But don't blame me if the train leaves without you!"

She stormed off dramatically with Emily's trunk in tow, leaving Hedwig sleeping despite the other two's laughter. Remus shooed her off, taking Hedwig with him as he followed Lily's path through the packed platform.

Still laughing the dark, messy head of hair ran back towards the entrance quickly scanning the crowd in search of anything familiar. Eventually she spotted James stomping off, tracing her path it was easy to find her parents. And the source of James' annoyance, the Black family.

She thought about waiting but when the first whistle rang out she knew she was running out of time. She still wasn't sure what exactly had happened with the Yule gift that had freaked her parents out, but maybe they had sorted it out by now…

"That _gift_ was not what I would give an _eleven year old_ on her birthday. _Especially,_ without talking to her parents."

Or maybe not. Good news was Regulus looked almost as uncomfortable as she felt. Bad news was that Black seemed to have the same righteous indignation that her father was wearing.

"I still think _I_ should have known. And why did he get picked first. I'm the oldest after all."

Lord Black glared at him, "You be quiet about things you do not understand. Plus, we did offer, you said something along the lines of 'death first' if I remember correctly."

"That didn't mean you had to stick Regulus with _her_."

His mother smacked him lightly on the back of the hand as a warning, "That family is highly respectable and has a wonderful lineage. It would be a blessing to join with them. I'm sure you'll find it less repulsive as you mature."

The elder boy proceeded to gag, quickly excusing himself and following James towards the train before his mom could land another warning.

Which was when Emily decided to insert herself before anything else could be said that she would want to forget, or worse find the answer to.

"Mother, Father." She hurried over to give them quick hugs, pretending to just notice the Blacks when she turned around, obviously not fooling half of them, the men were too busy staring each other down to notice, "My apologies, Lord and Lady Black, I didn't see you there, I just wanted to say goodbye to my parents before the train left."

"Please, call us Aunt and Uncle. We're family after all."

That… that was new, she glance over at her parents. Receiving an encouraging nod and a terse one she turned back with a small curtsy, "Thank you, Aunt Walburga, Uncle Orion. I'll be looking forward to celebrating the holidays with you."

"Us as well, we must go join the train then, come along Regulus."

He gave his cousin a slight bow before he followed his parents as they parted the crowd. Her parents swept her up as the train whistled the two minute warning.

"Have a good year, sweetie. Write to us as often as you can, and do your best no matter where you end up."

"Be nice to Minerva, she's still new to the Head of House position. And I don't want to hear you going to Dumbledore for anything but an award, for at least a month."

He gave her a grin and she laughed as he pulled her off her feet, too happy and sad to feel embarrassed by him. She gripped him tight back, she would miss flying with him every weekend but maybe they would when she got back.

"Love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Ems. Now go show them that Potter skill."

She giggled again as her mother pulled her up, "No matter where you end up, we're proud of you, we love you, and we want to hear from you immediately, understood?"

For whatever reason, mother has been making similar claims and assurances the last summer. Her father was still insistent that she would end up in Gryffindor and Emily was excited to be rooming close to James again. Her brother had been right when he said all of the Potter's as far as they could remember had been Gryffindor's. She didn't foresee that changing with herself.

"I know, Mum."

"Good girl, now hurry along! We'll expect that first owl tomorrow morning at the latest."

"Yes, Mum. Love you both!"

"Love you too, Sweetie!"

Their last words were echoing in her ears as she hurried onto the train. Pausing at the entrance to wave as the last whistle rang clear and the train started to move. She waved with the others as the train pulled from the platform, waving until she lost sight of the platform as the brick wall filled the space in front of her.

Shaking off the sudden feeling of homesickness she moved down the corridors of the train looking for any familiar bodies. Instead she heard a familiar voice.

"Well? C'mon! Let's go find her!"

"Would it not be more efficient to let her discover our location? She's more likely to stumble upon us if we sit still than if we were to wander the train."

"But what if someone else snags her?! You know how it was with James, just being a Potter she's going to be hounded by a bunch of people."

"To be fair most of those same people dislike James even if they won't show it to his face. He was a real twit his first year."

Severus snorted, "You say that as if it ended after that."

Emily caught sight of Remus' shrug as she peaked around the corner into their compartment, "He did get quite a lot better at hiding it, with the exception of you of course. You just seem to bring out the worst in him."

"How marvelous."

Emily's giggle at that finally drew the inhabitants awareness to her presence.

"You found us! Did you make it on okay?"

"She's standing before you in one piece, Lily, what do you think?" Emily grinned at Severus' obvious amusement.

The red head in question pointed her tongue in his general direction before guiding Emily to her seat, across from her and Severus right next to the door. Remus on her right so they could all chat to the best of their abilities and enjoy the ride back. They were barely seconds into a discussion of her hectic morning.

James had 'forgotten' to pack more than his books until the morning they had to leave. Which meant the entire family (since Emily had packed a week prior) had spent the hours after waking scrambling to find all of the bits and pieces that had been scattered around their home.

So the sound of Emily's stomach, signaling the end of the tale, came as no surprise to anyone in the compartment. Although it did bring a lot of humor with it. Unfortunately, the laughter was cut off with the sound of a door opening and a smirking teen.

"Well, look who we stumbled across. Glad to see you made it alright, Ems."

"Sounds like that was no thanks to you and your planning skills."

James continued speaking as though Severus had not interrupted, "Come on, Ems. We'll introduce you to some of the other Gryffindor firsties."

"No one knows which house they'll be sorted into."

Sirius grinned over at Remus, "But some people just know. The Potter's and the Longbottom's are prime examples. Not one was placed outside of Gryffindor. It's in their blood."

"You know as well as anyone, blood and family don't mean the same as anyone."

"Exactly, Potter. That parasite off your hip is a prime example."

"Watch it, Snivellus. That nose of yours is leading you into dangerous waters."

"Really, Black. If you're not careful someone's going to catch on to the fact you are crushing on Snape."

The entire group went dead silent as the new-comers words sank in. Lily was the first to laugh, but was far from alone in her merriment.

"Oh… God… Your faces!" Her choked out words brought a second round of laughter from the entirety of the group and the speaker's grin was remarkably wide as he basked in the sound. Unfortunately, Sirius had to go and ruin it.

"Reg. Don't go speaking like that. You'll get little Snapey's hopes up."

"Grow up, Black. Snape made it into Hogwarts just like you did and has managed to have friends in Gryffindor despite the fact he's a Slytherin. As far as I can tell he's done a better job at this school than you have."

"Figures you would take the slimy Slytherin's side. Brothers have no value anymore, do they?"

The blank, though slightly teasing expression that had adorned Regulus' face until this moment shattered, "You Black, are not my brother. You threw me to the wolves with the rest of the family, caring less than usual when your antics were backlashed onto me. So while you've been gallivanting around, playing with your friends I've been at home, being 'trained' as a Slytherin. And if I get into any house, except Slytherin? Well, I'm not going to be given a second chance. I've been told I'll be flat out disowned, because I should know better."

Sirius actually looked some what regretful, "Reg…"

"Forget him, Sirius. He's obviously making it up to make you feel bad. They didn't disown you, they won't disown him. But I wouldn't worry too much about it. He's definitely destined for the snake pit."

James pulled him out of the doorway, "Ems, Remus, come along."

The sandy haired boy rose to his feet reluctantly, "I have to share a room with them. Probably a good idea to avoid starting something this early in the year."

The rest of the group nodded, understandingly, "We'll see you at the feast, then."

Remus paused by the door, "Are you coming, Emily?"

Black hair shook, "No. He's not the boss of me, and he's not… just… I'm not coming, I'll see everyone at the sorting."

The other boy shut the door behind him as he migrated, reluctantly after the other two.

Regulus shifted awkwardly in the corner until Emily noticed his discomfort, "Sorry, Regulus. You can come sit by me."

Lily gave a pointed cough.

"Oops! I'm all over the place, sorry. This is Regulus Black, Sirius' slightly less annoying brother and my cousin. He's a first year like me. This is Severus, a third year Slytherin, and Lily, a third year Gryffindor."

"I'm hurt, cousin. I'm much less annoying than that child."

"Fine. His just as annoying but in a different way brother."

"Truce."

Lily grinned at him, "Nice to meet you, Regulus Black."

"Likewise, Lily…?"

"Evans. Muggleborn."

"Of course, Miss Lily Evans- Muggleborn."

"Blood purity isn't really that important, you know."

Emily rolled her eyes, "He was teasing Severus Snape. Lily said it first, remember?"

The dark eyed boy merely rolled his eyes and turned his head back to the window.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Severus Snape."

"And what, may I inquire, makes you believe I find any pleasure in it?"

The Slytherin smirk graced Regulus' face, "I've had the joy of hearing my brother cursing your existence all summer for two years. Any one who can get under his skin is either a truly remarkable person or related by blood. And I would love to learn your secret to his annoyance."

Severus smirked in return, "I'm afraid that is impossible. I earn his hatred simply by existing."

Lily and Emily rolled their eyes, amused against their desire as the two boys settled into an intense discussion relaying their hatred of the two most popular boys in third year.

(0,0)

Emily was standing in her non-descript robes as the train pulled into Hogsmeade. Which was when she was actually going to be alone for the first time since she stepped onto the platform. Well that wasn't quite true, Regulus was a first year as well. But it was kind of hard watching the rest of her friends head towards the carriages that pulled themselves and their passengers up to the castle.

Instead she followed the ground's keeper, she thought James had said his name was Harry Ruby or something, but that seemed rather insensitive so she stuck with smiling at him as they headed towards the Black Lake.

She stopped when it came into sight. James and Sirius had both said it was huge, but she had no idea… If the castle was bigger than the lake she was never going to find her way to all of her classes. Regulus went to step into another boat but Emily dragged him with her as they joined another two kids in a boat next to the ground's keeper.

"Nervous?"

"No!" He looked at her, "I'm not, just making sure you don't only sit with people you know. It's good to meet others."

He rolled his eyes, "Whatever you say, Potter."

"Hush you." She turned to the other two eleven year olds, a boy and a girl, "I'm Emily Potter, what are your names?"

The girl smiled at her, "I'm Ananda Rosethorp, and this is Jarold Bennett."

"I can speak for myself, you know."

"Sure you can."

"This is Regulus Black. Pleasure to meet both of you."

"I have a voice as well, Potter."

Emily shrugged, "Not my fault you didn't speak up soon enough."

Jarold gave Regulus a commiserating smile, "Don't girls just drive you insane?"

The Black boy gave a nod, "Especially when they decide to act like your mother."

Any response by the two girls was lost as someone gasped and all eyes were drawn forward to the suddenly looming visage of the castle.

"Wow."

The dark skies surrounding the brick only served to emphasize the many flickering lights from the countless windows. Light dancing all over the surface of the castle creating a magical feel that left even the most magical and experienced of viewers awed by the power, beauty, and age of the castle that stood before them.

Emily herself was stilled by the sight. All other sounds faded away as she watched the castle grow closer and closer. This would be her home away from home for the next seven years. She would meet friends, maybe find someone special as her mother phrased it, choose a career, make connections, and have a second family within her house.

The boats came to a sudden stop at the base of the castle and the large man began leading them all up towards the wooden doors.

This was going to be amazing.

Eventually the boats slid to a stop just meters from the castle and the large man encouraged everyone out of the boats and up the steps into the large stone lair. Absently, Emily allowed her arm to stretch out her fingers hesitantly approaching the stones. She jerked away instinctively half expecting to be attacked for such an action, or at least for them to be freezing from their time spent in the shadows.

But she reached out more confidently the second time. Emily's face curled up in delight as she felt the warmth from the stones, not hot enough to compare to a stove, nor uncomfortable enough to link to the warmth of an unknown human, more the feeling of curling in a blanket warmed by a fire. A comfortable feeling that made her think of home.

Beneath that she could just feel the thrum of magic. Magic that had been cast upon these very stones millennia ago. And those cast during the time since both to strengthen her and within her walls. All of which fed her, revived her, and allowed her to live as she had and harbor those who should seek the sanctuary and knowledge within her walls.

She was given no time to truly enjoy her discovery as she was whisked away by the flood of black cloaks and the firm grip Regulus had her hand in. But she just knew she would be found quite often in a quiet corner of the school simply trying to imagine all of the stories and wonders that these walls had seen over the years.

The first years were all herded into a small room upon entering the school. They could vaguely hear the voices of the hundreds of others beyond the walls when the door closed behind them. They were trapped in silence for what seemed an indefinable moment, before the door opened to reveal a thin, tight-lipped woman, who looked at them all with a stern expression.

"In a few moments you will pass through that door," All eyes followed hers to the right side of the room where most of the noise was coming from, "and you will begin a journey that will last seven years. Once you enter you will approach me and be sorted into one of four houses: Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Gryffindor. Each is headed by a single member of the staff, and has six prefects all of whom should be your first and foremost contacts should you have any questions or concerns. All of the aforementioned houses have redeeming qualities and have produced extraordinary wizards, any of them would be lucky to obtain yourselves as new members.

"Once you have been sorted you will join your new house at their table. Your house will be more than mere individuals, you will eat with them, sleep with them, study with them, and take class with them. Your house will become your family and all that entails. Please take these moments now to begin learning about your fellow students and establish a connection with them. Do not allow foolish house rivalries to color your judgement, for all that your house will be your family there are times when you may wish for something else. I will see you in a few moments, shall I?"

And with that she disappeared back through the door through which she had come. Leaving them all in the silence to wait for the Sorting to begin.

And wait for the Sorting.

And wait.

Okay. What was the wait for? Surely the carriages were faster than the boats. All everyone elder had to do was find a seat. Emily wasn't the only one anxious to start. All around her the first years were whispering. Sharing the worst possibilities of how they would be sorted. Dragon battles seemed to be the most popular horror story going around. Others were beginning to panic that they wouldn't be sorted at all. As if Hogwarts could ever make such a mistake. One redhead insisted his siblings told him they were to be battling trolls.

The only ones who seemed even remotely calm were purebloods. And even then it was only those from known Slytherin blood who were able to smother the nerves. Or at least keep it from their faces.

"What nonsense. I mean, truly what are the odds that any of that drivel will come to reality?"

Emily rolled her eyes, "If they imagine the worst reality will be easier. And don't act like you're not nervous Mister-Most-Proper."

Regulus' scoffing reply was lost as the excited whispers filled the room alongside the newly emerged Hogwarts' ghosts. Spirits mingled with the living in the small room many if the small bodies huddling together against the temperature drop.

Emily rose up on her toes to see them as they glided towards the Great Hall. Regulus made what was likely a snarky comment but Emily leaned over anyway to be polite and asked what he said. Unfortunately, the student in front of her shifted slightly and she found herself off-balance and falling. Several pairs of arms reached out instinctively to catch her, the only two that were somewhat successful cut through her like ice and she found herself looking at the hovering feet of the Fat Friar.

The kind eyes looked down on her, brimming with shock and sorrow.

"Oh dear, forgive me? I'm afraid I'd quite forgotten for a moment that I … I do hope you are quite unharmed?"

"Of course, sir." She pulled herself to her feet in order to give the Hufflepuff ghost a curtsy, "Thank you for your assistance, I'm afraid I'm too clumsy for most at the best of times."

The ghost tipped his head to the side before opening his mouth, only to be cut off by a cutting voice, "Ah look, one of them has manners. A bit plebian, mind you, but still refreshing."

She was going to take a stab in the dark and say that voice belonged to the Slytherin ghost, "Monsieur Baron. I assumed this is the part in which I would state the utmost pleasure I feel at being able to make your acquaintance?"

"Do not be ridiculous. I would prefer for you to simple stand silently and in awe rather than disturb my concentration with your own thoughts."

A female ghost interrupted Emily's mental scramble for a non-insolent remark, "Are you implying you are intrigued by this child, Baron?"

She made sure to curtsey to Ravenclaw's ghost slightly overwhelmed by the spirits around her. To be honest she was cold and on the verge of running, but something told her that would not be very polite. Or well received by any parties involved.

The Baron's reply was cut off by the final grey form, "The Baron? Intrigued, this girl I must meet. Where is the obviously miraculous child?"

"Good evening, Sir Nicholas." She went to introduce herself but was caught off guard as the House ghosts continued to speak over her.

"A good evening to you as well. She does have an air of good manners around her, but there's something about her… It appears as though there should be something about her which our dear Slytherin ghost would not approve."

"She quite reminds me of that messy haired child in your house, Sir Nicholas."

The man tilted his head to the side, falling off the almost severed neck to a chorus of disgusted, intrigued, and curious noises from the surrounding eleven year olds. He flipped his head upright within a exclamation, "Oh! Quite, quite, you mean the young Mr. Potter I presume."

"Unlike that child, this one appears to have a chance at maturity at some point in the future."

"You are too critical, my dear," The friar was obviously used to being a peace keeper of sorts, "He is merely exercising his rights as a child, undoubtedly he will mature and eventually see the error of his ways."

The Ravenclaw lady gave a very un-ladylike snort, "That child will hurt more than one child on that path and undoubtedly will never realize the pain and tears he left in his wake."

"My dear lady, you ignore the healing power of laughter. He is always bringing joy to the faces of the other children."

Even the Fat Friar only had so much to say in her brother's defense and apparently that's where it ran out, "The laughter in the found in the joy of others is the most dangerous of all and will tear the soul irreparably before any of the benefits can take root. The misery of others is never a reason to take joy."

Emily fought back her blush at the thought that they were not at all impressed by her older brother, to be fair, she had not been all that impressed by him these past two years but still…

It seemed as though the Bloody Baron was the only one to take not of her reaction to their analysis of her brother's character.

"Do you not agree with our assessment, Miss Potter?"

The other three spirits turned, obviously forgetting that the children were still surrounding them, "I'm afraid I only know part of my brother's actions while attending here. Unfortunately it tends to line up with your observations." She tucked her head slightly not really wanting to admit that she was related to someone they thought so little of.

"Ashamed of him? Tsk, tis a shame to be related to such a child is it not?"

"I'd rather be aware and ashamed than naïve and irresponsible. How can I hope to convince him his actions are wrong when those very actions are concealed from me due to my own desire to ignore the unpleasant fact that not everyone is as perfect as we wish for them to be."

The ghost went to respond but Emily had one more thing to say, "Besides all of that, my brother is and always will be my brother and no matter his actions towards others and to myself. He has always protected me and I will protect him as well, from himself if necessary. And I'm more than willing to physically adjust his actions, should it be needed."

The Slytherin ghost smirked at her, "Touché Miss Potter. I look forward to seeing your Sorting this evening. Although I doubt I'll be seeing you often- do feel free to stop for a chat every now and then."

The rest gave the translucent man a strange look before slowly following in his wake and passing through the stone and into the Great Hall. Immediately after the Fat Friar slid from view the temperature shot up and everyone let out a breath of air.

"Well that was terrifying."

All eyes turned to the Potter girl and she gave her small trio of friends a questioning look, "What?"

"Nothing. You only stood up to all four of the Hogwarts' ghosts at one time and actually managed to impress the Bloody Baron, something I've only heard of in my family's dreams and they're _all_ bloody Slytherins."

She rolled her eyes, "Trust me. All that seemed to be was really just the fact that I have no control over my actions when my family or friends are insulted. I'm lucky I sounded smart enough to avoid their derision."

Whatever response Regulus had in mind was lost as the door opened and the room fell into an overwhelming silence before they began to file into the Great Hall.

Emily reacted without thinking and reached out to grab the hands of Regulus and Ananda, she vaguely noticed Ananda reaching for Jarold who rolled his eyes before gripping her hand in return. This was going to be the start of something and Emily could only hope that it would be the start of something wonderful.

 **So I finally decided what to do about Voldemort. And I like it, not sure if you will. It will be coming up in the next chapter I think, or two, but it is coming! Thanks everyone for your patience and I'm going to try and get the next update in sooner, even if it is not as long as I would like it to be. Thanks again!**


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